McInnes Reflects on Parkhead Triumph and Gap-Closing Win
Derek McInnes was in a relaxed mood after Rangers claimed a 1-0 win at Celtic Park.
The result followed a 3-0 victory over the same opponents in the Premier Sports Cup at Ibrox just seven days earlier.
Ryan Naderi’s second-half strike proved decisive, giving Rangers back-to-back wins over their fiercest rivals inside a week.
Supporters can catch up on the finer details in our report on the Parkhead victory.
McInnes was quick to stress that three points at Parkhead carry the same weight as any other league fixture. But he admitted the manner of the win offered real reassurance ahead of the international break.
“It’s only three points and it’s the same three points as the next time out when we play. But I do think it’s a good reference point, that when you come to a tough environment like this, that the players dealt with it.
“I thought they would, to be honest. I didn’t have any concerns with that. We’ve had a good week’s work and I felt there was a quiet confidence and belief coming here. I didn’t think we’d go under with the pressure of it all. But obviously you don’t know until you know. And the players dealt with it.
“It’s a bit of a shame we have the break. Just in the sense that we’ve worked hard to get a rhythm and it would be nice to keep it going. But we’ve managed to bridge the gap. We didn’t want to go into this break eight points behind Celtic
“As good as getting to a semi-final feels, we’ve got that tucked away and it’s something to look forward to, it’s important we going into that game on good form. So hopefully we can pick up from where we left off.”
That reference to bridging the gap sits at the heart of the manager’s satisfaction.
Two wins over Celtic inside seven days have given Rangers real momentum heading into a fortnight without domestic action.
Supporters can relive both results in the recent derby double success.
Derek McInnes Dissects Naderi Growth and Striker Workload
Ryan Naderi has been forced to carry a heavy load in attack with Youssef Chermiti and Lawrence Shankland both sidelined through injury.
Kevin Kelsy is also growing into a Rangers shirt. He was very industrious and worked Celtic’s defenders hard on Sunday.
McInnes leaned on his forward pairing to fill that void. In his post-match media interview, the manager made clear that Naderi’s response has exceeded expectations.
“I thought Ryan was even better today than he was last week. He led the line brilliantly. It has helped him having Kevin up there with him. We also have Bojan Miovski, who is sharp every day in training, and good and clean with his work.
“They both know he’s there. We had to deal with the double whammy of Youssef Chermiti and Lawrence Shankland being out , but we’ve coped well.
“It took a month to get Kevin in but I knew once we did that the level of the others would come up. And I think Ryan has been terrific. His sheer willingness means he deserves good things to happen to him.
“And I’m glad he’s managed to get himself on the scoresheet. That was a big moment for him but also a big moment for us as a club.”
It was a standout performance from Naderi.
While McInnes shared a moment with all his players at full-time at Parkhead, he lingered a wee bit longer with the Dresden-born front man.
Some appreciation and praise will have been well received…and deserved.
Naderi pounces when it matters
The winning goal itself summed up that willingness. Naderi pounced on a loose ball after Celtic goalkeeper Viljami Sinisalo failed to hold Minsu Kim’s effort from distance.
He reacted fastest to bury the rebound. It was a striker’s finish, built on instinct rather than a clean route to goal, and it settled a tight contest.
Naderi arrived at Ibrox in January from the German third division. The move was reported at around £5 million, though the club has not officially confirmed that figure.
Since then he has become a regular topic of conversation among supporters. His finishing has drawn plenty of attention.
So has the physical side of his game, including the SFA enquiry following the tackle he suffered during last week’s cup tie.
Having Kelsy fit and firing alongside Naderi has clearly eased the burden. McInnes’ point about squad depth is telling, with Bojan Miovski also pushing for minutes.
Rangers look better placed to cope with injuries in forward areas than they were earlier in the season.
Celtic Opposition Context & Parkhead Atmosphere Reaction
Winning at Celtic Park is rarely straightforward. McInnes acknowledged the scale of the challenge posed by a hostile crowd of around 60,000.
He credited his squad’s togetherness for helping them handle that pressure, particularly given how quickly this Rangers group has been assembled.
“Sometimes when you have a young squad put together so quickly you work hard to try and manifest that (fight).
“You try and bring that bond and it’s a daily thing. You have to work at it. You have to make sure you’re looking after everybody.
“We knew coming here today that we had to look after each other out there. It’s a different set of circumstances to last week but we knew if we could get in front, the benefit of Celtic having 60,000 could actually impact on them.
“I thought Naderi and others were brilliant last week. But he took his game up another notch today. I wasn’t too happy with the strikers in the first 15 minutes, they weren’t holding the ball, were late to the party and weren’t doing what we asked them to do.
“But once they started to connect the game and link play, I thought we looked a real threat. The two of them were a proper handful for their three centre-backs.”
Comments.
Loading comments…